trikes?

On Apr 21, 4:30*am, Harry Brogan
wrote:
On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 18:52:30 -0700, "Kerry Montgomery"





wrote:

"Harry Brogan" wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 19 Apr 2011 15:34:16 -0700 (PDT), Andre Jute
wrote:

On Apr 19, 5:37 am, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:
Hi all,
Am in the market for a trike, for balance reasons. All I see are
recumbents,
but don't know what the (dis)advantages are of tadpoles and deltas are.
Or,
for that matter, if there are brands that are well regarded.
Thanks,
Kerry

I went into this trikes thoroughly a few years ago. I dismissed 1F2R
wheel designs at the outset as basically unstable, good only for
shopping at very moderate pace, which I don't think is what you have
in mind.

IIRC correctly, I settled on the Anthrotech as the best buy, being
well-made, easy to get into and out of, safe and reasonable fast:
http://anthrotech.de/Pages-e/index-e.html

Stateside there was this, which may or may not be more of a novelty
than a bike, but which I eventually dismissed as too low to be
practical either for sitting/rising or visibility on the road.
http://www.pedalcoupe.com/

Among the low speedsters, not useful on my roads:

I looked at a well-reputed, well-priced folding, very low recumbent
tricycle from HP Velotech, but can't find the file now; they're in a
big way of business, so you can find them on the net

This one I liked for its technical interest -- my own specialty in
automobiles is suspension, so my fascination with such a beautiful set
of A-frames follows naturally:
http://www.tripendo.com/EDEFAULT.htm

And this is what I would have bought if I were in the market for such
a low device:
http://www.tripod-bikes.com/
The Tripod is in about the same price group as my Utopia Kranich,
which for a tricycle with many more components, competently made by a
Dutch firm, is not outrageous. Note though that essentials like
mudguards and lights are extra. Probably, fully fitted up right out to
the panniers, ready to tour, a Rohloff version mght leave a bit of
change out of six grand American, standing on your driveway.

As an only or everyday bike, the Anthrotech seemed the most practical.

Andre Jute
http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/Andre%20Jute's%20Utopia%20Kranich.pdf

Why didn't you mention that there are numerous manufacturers out there
that are inherently cheaper than the models you describe here. *For
someone that is just starting out 3 grand is quite an investment.

Harry,
I'm happy to look at any trikes that have been suggested here. 3 grand is
more than I would like to pay, but may end up spending that much if it's
what it takes to get a suitable trike. Am just starting out on trikes, but
have ridden bike for 50 years or so.
Thanks,
Kerry

I owned a Sun Tadpole for quite a while before I had to move. *Anyway,
although it did NOT have some of the things on it at the start that I
would have liked it was WELL withing my price range. *I paid less than
1000 for it and then upgraded as I went along.

I changed the wheels and built my own custom alloy ones. *Then I
changed the tires to a set of reflective Street Skinz. *Since it
already had Disc brakes I only did an upgrade to Avid Juicy 7
hydraulics. *Fenders were added by doing a bit of customizing from an
old set of 20 inch ones from Planet Bike. *Also, there was a rear rack
for hauling things. *I even had a BoB trailer that I used for trips to
the grocery store.

True this trike is a lot heavier than a lot of them on the market.
But it is a GREAT starter for someone that is just jumping into the
trike world. *It's built like a tank and holds up extremely well under
harsh riding conditions. *I was out in six inches of snow and some
extreme cold and it rode just fine. *Rarely did I ever scrape the
bottom due to jumping a curb. *Also, it was one of the TOP bikes for
me as far as the "Fun Factor".

Here are a few photos for you......

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/tri...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/Tri...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/Tri...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/AVI...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/AVI...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...om%20Stuff/AVI...

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...0Stuff/Hea...- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

spiff !

On 21/04/2011 05:55, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"Tºm ShermªnT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/19/2011 11:45 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"T?m Sherm?nT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/18/2011 11:37 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
Hi all,
Am in the market for a trike, for balance reasons. All I see are
recumbents,
but don't know what the (dis)advantages are of tadpoles and deltas are.

Tadpoles are better for long rides and fast cornering. Deltas are
better
for shorter trips around town. (As a general rule)

Velomobiles are heavy and expensive, but very fast under the right
conditions and offer good to excellent weather protection.

Or,
for that matter, if there are brands that are well regarded.

ICE (Inspired Cycle Engineering), Greenspeed, Trisled, AVD
(Windcheetah),
Big Cat HPV (Catrike), HP Velotechnik, Optima, Wizwheelz, Organic
Engines
come to mind off the top of my head as brands I would feel confident in
buying.

Sun also makes trikes at a lower price range, and as a division of J&B,
they can be ordered by any LBS that has a J&B account.

Tell us where you are at (general vicinity) and we may be able to
suggest
a dealer near you.

Also your price range and expected use would be helpful. Unfortunately,
due to greater complexity and economies of scale, a $2,000 trike will
have
a frame quality and component level of a $800 road bike.

--
T?m Sherm?n - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Hi all,
Thanks for the many thoughts. As T?m surmised, I am recumbent ignorant,
but
know that I don't want a Worksman, or equivalent, trike. I don't think my
cornering skill level ever was good enough for an upright racing trike -
have seen videos of them going around turns at high rates of speed with
the
rider WAY over on the inside.

If you can drive a go-cart, you can ride a tadpole trike at speed.

A tadpole may be the right kind of thing for me - did a little shopping
at
Coventry Cycles today (very nice folks here in Portland, OR). One of my
problems is with changing from a sitting to a standing position, so a
relatively high seat may be valuable. The AnthroTech that Andre mentioned
might be good in that regard, haven't yet done much research into
availability, weight, cost, etc.

Yes, low tadpoles are not the easiest to sit down on and get up from.

Have not been there, but Coventry has a good reputation.

Desired price range would be about $2,000, but may have to re-evaluate
that
upward based on what I've seen so far.

Yes, all to easy to spend $4, $5 or $6K.

In an ideal world, it would fit in the back of a Subaru Impreza wagon
that
has the back seats folded down. Otherwise, am looking for some sort of
rack
(other than a roof rack).

The Greenspeed folding trikes should fit. Otherwise, something like a
Draftsmaster should work:http://www.atoc.com/draftmastertrike.php.

Use will mostly be exercise on bike trails and paths. It'd be good if it
had
low enough gears to get me up at least railroad grades on
rails-to-trails,

You *should* have lower gears on a trike that you have used on an upright.
If your lowest gear on an upright was 30 gear-inches, I would consider a
low gear of 15-18 gear inches on a trike, or even lower if you will be
doing loaded touring. Since balance is not an issue, you will never need
to get off and walk as long as your gears are low enough. Sacrifice top
end gears, if you do not want to go to the expense of a Rohloff hub or
Schlumpf BB.

You may also want to consider cranks that are 20 to 30-mm shorter than
what you have used on an upright. Short cranks and low gears will help
you get up hills, until your muscles accommodate to the different riding
position.

and some sort of tire compromise that would let me try some gravel road
in
the woods stuff.

I have Maxxis Hookworms on my trike, which work well both on pavement and
moderate gravel and non-muddy trails. A robust tire on the rear is good,
since you will find that you will straddle potholes with the front wheels,
and then hit them with the back.

If you can afford it, rear suspension makes for a very nice and relaxing
ride. Combine it with heavy duty tires (e.g. Hookworms or other BMX
tires), and you can pay much less attention to the road than you would on
a bicycle, and much more to what is around you (the riding position also
helps here).

If I were ever to do any touring, a trike would be my first choice for the
above (and other) reasons.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Tom,
I can drive a go-kart, even one in Germany, where they have fewer lawyers
and, it seemed, faster karts on faster tracks. But, the direct-steer
CatTrike that I rode seemed very twitchy to me. May be just inexperience,
though.
Good suggestions on the tires and gear ratios - will be happier with a
derailleur system that I can work on rather than an internally geared hub.
Thanks again,
Kerry


You could also try ICE Trikes they fold down quite small with the option
of front and rear suspension. Feels great at speed, my 08 Q that is.
Best to try before you buy. See http://www.icetrikes.co/

--
Chris

"Chris" wrote in message
...
On 21/04/2011 05:55, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"Tºm ShermªnT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/19/2011 11:45 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"T?m Sherm?nT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/18/2011 11:37 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
Hi all,
Am in the market for a trike, for balance reasons. All I see are
recumbents,
but don't know what the (dis)advantages are of tadpoles and deltas
are.

Tadpoles are better for long rides and fast cornering. Deltas are
better
for shorter trips around town. (As a general rule)

Velomobiles are heavy and expensive, but very fast under the right
conditions and offer good to excellent weather protection.

Or,
for that matter, if there are brands that are well regarded.

ICE (Inspired Cycle Engineering), Greenspeed, Trisled, AVD
(Windcheetah),
Big Cat HPV (Catrike), HP Velotechnik, Optima, Wizwheelz, Organic
Engines
come to mind off the top of my head as brands I would feel confident
in
buying.

Sun also makes trikes at a lower price range, and as a division of
J&B,
they can be ordered by any LBS that has a J&B account.

Tell us where you are at (general vicinity) and we may be able to
suggest
a dealer near you.

Also your price range and expected use would be helpful.
Unfortunately,
due to greater complexity and economies of scale, a $2,000 trike will
have
a frame quality and component level of a $800 road bike.

--
T?m Sherm?n - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Hi all,
Thanks for the many thoughts. As T?m surmised, I am recumbent ignorant,
but
know that I don't want a Worksman, or equivalent, trike. I don't think
my
cornering skill level ever was good enough for an upright racing
trike -
have seen videos of them going around turns at high rates of speed with
the
rider WAY over on the inside.

If you can drive a go-cart, you can ride a tadpole trike at speed.

A tadpole may be the right kind of thing for me - did a little shopping
at
Coventry Cycles today (very nice folks here in Portland, OR). One of my
problems is with changing from a sitting to a standing position, so a
relatively high seat may be valuable. The AnthroTech that Andre
mentioned
might be good in that regard, haven't yet done much research into
availability, weight, cost, etc.

Yes, low tadpoles are not the easiest to sit down on and get up from.

Have not been there, but Coventry has a good reputation.

Desired price range would be about $2,000, but may have to re-evaluate
that
upward based on what I've seen so far.

Yes, all to easy to spend $4, $5 or $6K.

In an ideal world, it would fit in the back of a Subaru Impreza wagon
that
has the back seats folded down. Otherwise, am looking for some sort of
rack
(other than a roof rack).

The Greenspeed folding trikes should fit. Otherwise, something like a
Draftsmaster should work:http://www.atoc.com/draftmastertrike.php.

Use will mostly be exercise on bike trails and paths. It'd be good if
it
had
low enough gears to get me up at least railroad grades on
rails-to-trails,

You *should* have lower gears on a trike that you have used on an
upright.
If your lowest gear on an upright was 30 gear-inches, I would consider a
low gear of 15-18 gear inches on a trike, or even lower if you will be
doing loaded touring. Since balance is not an issue, you will never
need
to get off and walk as long as your gears are low enough. Sacrifice top
end gears, if you do not want to go to the expense of a Rohloff hub or
Schlumpf BB.

You may also want to consider cranks that are 20 to 30-mm shorter than
what you have used on an upright. Short cranks and low gears will help
you get up hills, until your muscles accommodate to the different riding
position.

and some sort of tire compromise that would let me try some gravel road
in
the woods stuff.

I have Maxxis Hookworms on my trike, which work well both on pavement
and
moderate gravel and non-muddy trails. A robust tire on the rear is
good,
since you will find that you will straddle potholes with the front
wheels,
and then hit them with the back.

If you can afford it, rear suspension makes for a very nice and relaxing
ride. Combine it with heavy duty tires (e.g. Hookworms or other BMX
tires), and you can pay much less attention to the road than you would
on
a bicycle, and much more to what is around you (the riding position also
helps here).

If I were ever to do any touring, a trike would be my first choice for
the
above (and other) reasons.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Tom,
I can drive a go-kart, even one in Germany, where they have fewer lawyers
and, it seemed, faster karts on faster tracks. But, the direct-steer
CatTrike that I rode seemed very twitchy to me. May be just inexperience,
though.
Good suggestions on the tires and gear ratios - will be happier with a
derailleur system that I can work on rather than an internally geared
hub.
Thanks again,
Kerry


You could also try ICE Trikes they fold down quite small with the option
of front and rear suspension. Feels great at speed, my 08 Q that is. Best
to try before you buy. See http://www.icetrikes.co/

--
Chris

Chris,
Thanks for the suggestion. Haven't seen an ICE yet, but now have one of
their brochures. Do you know which of the current models (Adventure, Sprint,
Vortex) your Q is similar to? Coventry Cycles has/will have an Adventure RS
in stock, but that model comes only with Sturmey Archer drum brakes, which
seem less desirable than discs. Does yours have drum brakes, and, if so, how
do you like them?
At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I can fit
it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're available with
derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry

On 26/04/2011 04:58, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
wrote in message
...
On 21/04/2011 05:55, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"Tºm ShermªnT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/19/2011 11:45 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
"T?m Sherm?nT " wrote in
message ...
On 4/18/2011 11:37 PM, Kerry Montgomery wrote:
Hi all,
Am in the market for a trike, for balance reasons. All I see are
recumbents,
but don't know what the (dis)advantages are of tadpoles and deltas
are.

Tadpoles are better for long rides and fast cornering. Deltas are
better
for shorter trips around town. (As a general rule)

Velomobiles are heavy and expensive, but very fast under the right
conditions and offer good to excellent weather protection.

Or,
for that matter, if there are brands that are well regarded.

ICE (Inspired Cycle Engineering), Greenspeed, Trisled, AVD
(Windcheetah),
Big Cat HPV (Catrike), HP Velotechnik, Optima, Wizwheelz, Organic
Engines
come to mind off the top of my head as brands I would feel confident
in
buying.

Sun also makes trikes at a lower price range, and as a division of
J&B,
they can be ordered by any LBS that has a J&B account.

Tell us where you are at (general vicinity) and we may be able to
suggest
a dealer near you.

Also your price range and expected use would be helpful.
Unfortunately,
due to greater complexity and economies of scale, a $2,000 trike will
have
a frame quality and component level of a $800 road bike.

--
T?m Sherm?n - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Hi all,
Thanks for the many thoughts. As T?m surmised, I am recumbent ignorant,
but
know that I don't want a Worksman, or equivalent, trike. I don't think
my
cornering skill level ever was good enough for an upright racing
trike -
have seen videos of them going around turns at high rates of speed with
the
rider WAY over on the inside.

If you can drive a go-cart, you can ride a tadpole trike at speed.

A tadpole may be the right kind of thing for me - did a little shopping
at
Coventry Cycles today (very nice folks here in Portland, OR). One of my
problems is with changing from a sitting to a standing position, so a
relatively high seat may be valuable. The AnthroTech that Andre
mentioned
might be good in that regard, haven't yet done much research into
availability, weight, cost, etc.

Yes, low tadpoles are not the easiest to sit down on and get up from.

Have not been there, but Coventry has a good reputation.

Desired price range would be about $2,000, but may have to re-evaluate
that
upward based on what I've seen so far.

Yes, all to easy to spend $4, $5 or $6K.

In an ideal world, it would fit in the back of a Subaru Impreza wagon
that
has the back seats folded down. Otherwise, am looking for some sort of
rack
(other than a roof rack).

The Greenspeed folding trikes should fit. Otherwise, something like a
Draftsmaster should work:http://www.atoc.com/draftmastertrike.php.

Use will mostly be exercise on bike trails and paths. It'd be good if
it
had
low enough gears to get me up at least railroad grades on
rails-to-trails,

You *should* have lower gears on a trike that you have used on an
upright.
If your lowest gear on an upright was 30 gear-inches, I would consider a
low gear of 15-18 gear inches on a trike, or even lower if you will be
doing loaded touring. Since balance is not an issue, you will never
need
to get off and walk as long as your gears are low enough. Sacrifice top
end gears, if you do not want to go to the expense of a Rohloff hub or
Schlumpf BB.

You may also want to consider cranks that are 20 to 30-mm shorter than
what you have used on an upright. Short cranks and low gears will help
you get up hills, until your muscles accommodate to the different riding
position.

and some sort of tire compromise that would let me try some gravel road
in
the woods stuff.

I have Maxxis Hookworms on my trike, which work well both on pavement
and
moderate gravel and non-muddy trails. A robust tire on the rear is
good,
since you will find that you will straddle potholes with the front
wheels,
and then hit them with the back.

If you can afford it, rear suspension makes for a very nice and relaxing
ride. Combine it with heavy duty tires (e.g. Hookworms or other BMX
tires), and you can pay much less attention to the road than you would
on
a bicycle, and much more to what is around you (the riding position also
helps here).

If I were ever to do any touring, a trike would be my first choice for
the
above (and other) reasons.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

Tom,
I can drive a go-kart, even one in Germany, where they have fewer lawyers
and, it seemed, faster karts on faster tracks. But, the direct-steer
CatTrike that I rode seemed very twitchy to me. May be just inexperience,
though.
Good suggestions on the tires and gear ratios - will be happier with a
derailleur system that I can work on rather than an internally geared
hub.
Thanks again,
Kerry


You could also try ICE Trikes they fold down quite small with the option
of front and rear suspension. Feels great at speed, my 08 Q that is. Best
to try before you buy. See http://www.icetrikes.co/

--
Chris

Chris,
Thanks for the suggestion. Haven't seen an ICE yet, but now have one of
their brochures. Do you know which of the current models (Adventure, Sprint,
Vortex) your Q is similar to? Coventry Cycles has/will have an Adventure RS
in stock, but that model comes only with Sturmey Archer drum brakes, which
seem less desirable than discs. Does yours have drum brakes, and, if so, how
do you like them?
At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I can fit
it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're available with
derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry


I would say the Q is equivalent to the Sprint, the difference being the
clearance under the trike and the more upright seating in the Adventure.
Drum brakes are very powerful and virtually no maintenance and last
virtually for ever, one member of triceriders Yahoo group managed to
ware them out after 26,000 miles. Disks might be better if you plan on
doing a lot of long steep down hills, its available as an option
according to their web site. There is no brake steer if you brake on one
side only for some reason. Their web site is very good although I would
take 30s for taking out of a small car unfolding and setting off with a
pinch of salt. Customer service is excellent.

--
Chris

On Apr 26, 4:58*am, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:

At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I can fit
it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're available with
derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry

Though they're similarly named, the Scorpion and the Scorpion fx are
not the same trike at all. On the Scorpion you sit very low, your feet
above seat level. On the fx you sit maybe four inches higher, with
your feet below the seat level. The seating arrangement of the fx is
nearer to the Anthrotech that was my own first choice, and my first
recommendation to you. The fx isn't so far down as the Scorpion when
you want to sit down. On the whole, I noted at the time, if I had to
take an HP, it would be the fx, even though I don't need a folder,
simply because it is a bit more dignified for men of certain
maturity...

Andre Jute
Visit Andre's recipes:
http://coolmainpress.com/andrejutefoodindex.html

Andre Jute wrote:
On Apr 26, 4:58 am, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:

At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I
can fit it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're
available with derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three
seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry

Though they're similarly named, the Scorpion and the Scorpion fx are
not the same trike at all. On the Scorpion you sit very low, your feet
above seat level. On the fx you sit maybe four inches higher, with
your feet below the seat level. The seating arrangement of the fx is
nearer to the Anthrotech that was my own first choice, and my first
recommendation to you. The fx isn't so far down as the Scorpion when
you want to sit down. On the whole, I noted at the time, if I had to
take an HP, it would be the fx, even though I don't need a folder,
simply because it is a bit more dignified for men of certain
maturity...

Andre Jute
Visit Andre's recipes:
http://coolmainpress.com/andrejutefoodindex.html

Andre,
Thanks - didn't realize that there was that much difference. Looking at the
seat heights, though, your estimate of four inches higher for the fx is
pretty close. The Scorpion with each of the three seat options is at 10, 11,
and 14.5 inches. The Scorpion fx with the same three seats is at 13, 15, and
18 inches. May be well worth the extra couple of hundred dollars to me,
whether it is ever folded or not.
Did you try either trike with more than one seat? Am wondering if, when the
seat height dimension is increased from 13 to 15 inches, the height of the
front edge of the seat also increase by two inches? I believe that the 13
and 15 inches refer to the distance between the bottom of the rider's bottom
and the ground.
Thanks again; it feels like I'm getting closer and closer,
Kerry

On 4/26/2011 7:29 PM, Andre Jute wrote:
On Apr 26, 4:58 am, "Kerry wrote:

At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I can fit
it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're available with
derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry

Though they're similarly named, the Scorpion and the Scorpion fx are
not the same trike at all. On the Scorpion you sit very low, your feet
above seat level. On the fx you sit maybe four inches higher, with
your feet below the seat level. The seating arrangement of the fx is
nearer to the Anthrotech that was my own first choice, and my first
recommendation to you. The fx isn't so far down as the Scorpion when
you want to sit down. On the whole, I noted at the time, if I had to
take an HP, it would be the fx, even though I don't need a folder,
simply because it is a bit more dignified for men of certain
maturity...

On the other hand, many will find having the bottom bracket above seat
height to be much more comfortable and efficient. I have through
thousands of miles of experimentation come to prefer a bottom bracket at
least 15 cm above seat height.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

On Apr 27, 1:51*am, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:
Andre Jute wrote:
On Apr 26, 4:58 am, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:

At present am leaning toward a HP Velotechnik Scorpion fx, or, if I
can fit it in the Impreza wagon, the plain Scorpion. They're
available with derailleur gears, disc brakes, and any one of three
seat heights.
Thanks much,
Kerry

Though they're similarly named, the Scorpion and the Scorpion fx are
not the same trike at all. On the Scorpion you sit very low, your feet
above seat level. On the fx you sit maybe four inches higher, with
your feet below the seat level. The seating arrangement of the fx is
nearer to the Anthrotech that was my own first choice, and my first
recommendation to you. The fx isn't so far down as the Scorpion when
you want to sit down. On the whole, I noted at the time, if I had to
take an HP, it would be the fx, even though I don't need a folder,
simply because it is a bit more dignified for men of certain
maturity...

Andre Jute
Visit Andre's recipes:
*http://coolmainpress.com/andrejutefoodindex.html

Andre,
Thanks - didn't realize that there was that much difference. Looking at the
seat heights, though, your estimate of four inches higher for the fx is
pretty close. The Scorpion with each of the three seat options is at 10, 11,
and 14.5 inches. The Scorpion fx with the same three seats is at 13, 15, and
18 inches. May be well worth the extra couple of hundred dollars to me,
whether it is ever folded or not.
Did you try either trike with more than one seat? Am wondering if, when the
seat height dimension is increased from 13 to 15 inches, the height of the
front edge of the seat also increase by two inches? I believe that the 13
and 15 inches refer to the distance between the bottom of the rider's bottom
and the ground.
Thanks again; it feels like I'm getting closer and closer,
Kerry

Kerry, I'd like to help you, but I had an afternoon to try several
trikes in a parking lot, not a fair test. That's about what made an
impression on me, that the fx seat was a useful amount higher, if not
as high as the Anthrotech seat (I wasn't testing them back to back,
unfortunately), but that the HP trikes were better designed, neater,
to make up for being about 30% pricier than the Anthrotech. Sure, I
was told there were other seats for the HPs but they had by my request
fitted the highest seats before I arrived, so I never tried the
others.

See, my riding is all on public roads, whereas my understanding is
that you are happy to take your trike to special venues, and even the
dealers were doubtful about a trike on my narrow lanes with cars and
tractors. In the end I bought a two-wheel recumbent made by Giant
(Liddell Tommi told me it is classed as a semi-recumbent), from which
you could put your feet on the ground. Those mickey mouse wheels
didn't light my fire, and I shortly passed it on and, after further
adventures (crankforward bikes in my geribike experiments), Chalo
suggested I give Utopia (which I earlier dismissed as odd and
outrageously expensive) another look, and there I found happiness. In
short, my trike experience is negligible, though I made a thorough
paper investigation at the time to arrive at a shortlist.

The HP is clearly the best of the generally available top brands
(quality of construction, availability of parts, etc). But then, so it
should be. You're paying a stiff premium for German workmanship. Sir
Henry Royce said,"The quality will please long after the price is
forgotten." Something in that!

Good luck.

Andre Jute

On 4/26/2011 10:35 PM, Andre Jute wrote:
[...]
See, my riding is all on public roads, whereas my understanding is
that you are happy to take your trike to special venues, and even the
dealers were doubtful about a trike on my narrow lanes with cars and
tractors.[...]

Not a problem in the real world.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.